What to Do When You're Stressed

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This is what the average professor thinks: Oh, I see that I scheduled an exam for next week. Here’s a project, homework assignment, and lab report all due next week as well! I want to make sure that you have absolutely no time to sleep, eat, have fun, or—heaven forbid—actually study for the exam.

Now multiply that by 4 other classes and you have college.

If you’re wondering where I was last week and you guessed squashed underneath a mountain of work and misery, then you guessed correctly. Your prize is this: Google “Teacup Pigs.” You’re welcome.

If you’ve ever been a human being, you know what it feels like to be overwhelmed. To have more work to do than hours in the day. To look at the clock and see that it’s 11 p.m. and know that you have four more hours of studying before you can go to sleep. Then you see those people who are so incredibly good at managing time that they’re always done with their homework. People like my boyfriend, who I’m pretty sure either owns a time-turner or is a cyborg. And it’s frustrating, because I have no idea how they get more work done in less time while having the same number of hours in a day. If anyone figures this out, let me know.

So if you’re like me and you do get overwhelmed and stressed out, here are my tips for not completely losing it:

Make a list. It always makes me feel better to write down everything I have to do instead of having it bouncing around in my head. Sometimes I’ll write down times next to the things I have to do so I know how much time I have to allot for different assignments.

Yoga. My school offers free yoga classes at our “Stress-Free Zone,” so check if yours does, too. Yoga is awesome because it helps you center yourself and get perspective on things.

Bake something. It’s therapeutic, AND you get cookies. Everyone wins.

Exercise. My roommate does this more than I do, but some people like to get all their stress out and burn some calories at the same time. I think I prefer the cookie option, though…

Color. Print a coloring page off the internet and take 5 minutes to sit down with a box of crayons and revert to a time when the hardest thing you had to do was tie your shoes.

Consider the worst case scenario. So you can’t finish one or two homework problems—in the long run, it’s not going to hurt you that much. If you’re really crunched for time, focus on doing the most important things (and things with a closer due date) first.

Drink tea. Anything with the words zen, calm, or peaceful on the package is normally a safe bet.

Paint your nails. Don’t just throw some polish on; really take your time with it.

Clean your room. Having a clean room is like having a clean brain. It may sound boring, but you'll thank me when you're done.

So Sparklers, now that you’re calm, cool, and collected, get to work! Leave your best de-stress tips in the comments!